Does your family think biking is unhealthy too?
Posted by: AngelaApr 18 2008, 10:19 am
We've been collecting surveys for our Safer Routes to School program and the data are pointing toward very fascinating and exciting results. Of course, we can't yet comment on those results since they're not finalized (and therefore not public) but as soon as we can, we'll let you know!
Cliffhanger aside, with the surveys we also gathered parent comments that are just as fascinating. Comments such as, "He loves to bike and its faster" or "I love that you have a program for teaching kids bike safety rules - my son said 'I can't wait for 3rd grade so I can ride my bike'" are so encouraging!
But one comment in particular strikes me and I'd like to hear more from you. We often find that educating parents on the reality of safety and health concerns is our biggest barrier. How do you politely yet effectively educate adults who have made up their minds about what is best for their children? A parent wrote:
"I will not permit my child to walk or bike to school. It is unsafe and considering environmental toxins such as vehicle exhaust it is not particularly healthy."
What do you have to say? And remember, what we do know is that you catch more flies with honey…
Most people have a skewed sense of both risk and exposure re: automobile pollutants. Notable factoids:
* "Gas-phase" (i.e. non particulate) pollutants are at least as high inside a car as outside. (In other words, being outside a running car exposes you to less carbon monoxide, benzene, or sulfides than being inside the same car.)
* Fresh air controls or air conditioning have no effect on pollutant levels inside a car.
* Particulate levels are comparable or less inside cars, but the effect drops dramatically away from a high-traffic road. (In other words, if you ride on quiet residential streets or bike paths you have very little exposure to *any* pollutant.)
* The more time you spend in and around cars, especially at rush hour, the greater your exposure.
* Children living within a third of a mile from a major freeway are more likely to develop asthma and other diseases, and have less-developed lungs. (In other words, sprawling development (with more freeways) contributes to more lifetime lung disease than more dense development with fewer freeways)
* Airborne pollutants are lower in neighborhoods with higher residential density and mixed land use (exactly the kind encouraged by a city with lots of cyclists.)
–
A good way to regard pollutants: the less exposure to the source of the pollutant the better; the farther away from the source the better. If your family's lifestyle necessitates spending lots of time in or near cars (i.e. driving everywhere), then you're actually *maximizing* your family's exposure to automotive pollutants.
Think of it this way: where do you think you're less exposed to pollutants: near a steel mill or *inside* a steel mill?
REFERENCES:
http://cascadiascorecard.typepad.com/sprawl_and_health/2005/08/icta_2000_incar.html
Apr 18 2008 at 10:50 amhttp://www.arb.ca.gov/research/indoor/in-vehsm.htm
http://cascadiascorecard.typepad.com/sprawl_and_health/air_quality_outdoor/index.html
http://uscnews.usc.edu/hscweekly/detail.php?recordnum=13364
http://www.nutramed.com/environment/carschemicals.htm
Paul -
This is awesome! I'd really love to hear more about how to chat with parents in a friendly way, or what we could put in quick tips brochures. This much info, and particularly the hard numbers in factoids, is really hard to sneak into a conversation in the school halls or on the playground!
If anyone has a good elevator speech that seems effective with busy parents please sound off!
Apr 18 2008 at 1:41 pmYeah, "emissions" don't magically stop at the car.
And I would also contend that autos are not as "safe" as people like to think:
http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov/Main/index.aspx
Apr 19 2008 at 4:47 pmI'm no good at elevator speeches. To this particular line of reasoning I tend to be blunt: "Hm, if walking and biking is really a public safety problem, does your choice to drive instead make this problem better or worse? If cars are a threat like WMDs, is driving one like shock and awe? I try to teach my child to be safe without endangering others."
Apr 20 2008 at 10:51 amPaul - your comments/factoids are right on.
Angela, it is an interesting dilemma you face. It is hard to break through perceived risk when it comes to air quality, or the idea that "the nose knows."
Apr 21 2008 at 12:03 pmA concept that might help is to consider risk based on the size of the space you are in. Outside, pollutants disperse and dilute relatively quickly, whereas a home, a school, or a car are all confined spaces that, especially if ventilated poorly, quickly concentrate environmental pollutants. Incidentally, there are countless sources of toxins in all of those confined places that have nothing to do with car exhaust - carpet, furniture, cooking exhaust, upholstery, and on and on, a lot of which have no odor. Of course, this knowledge might make already-paranoid parents even more paranoid…
Good luck!
I think breaking through those kind of attitudes is helped by proper tone and presence as much as what you say.
I always like to do a lot of listening first. Really just ask people as if you really have no clue "Why do you think it's dangerous?". And then really hear them. If you are actually on an elevator get off with them at their floor and just be chill and listen.
When your target (and their rhetoric) has died down a bit, then you're in a position to say "I feel like it doesn't have to be like that. There are certainly risks but I think cycling can be very safe when a responsible child is shown how to bike safely and responsibly. These are valuable skills that will serve a person well for their entire life. And the rewards are greater than the risks."
Then (if you feel it's appropriate) you have to offer to help them out. You generosity and willingness to support them as an experienced cyclist is the honey. They will think about the offer and the next time they see some kid biking to their school they might think about the rewards.
But it's got to be done without pretense and with an amiable "this couldn't be easier" kind of positive attitude. Admittedly personally I'm not always in the mood to pull that off but when the sun is shining I know I can thread the needle of a positive spin in the face of ignorance.
Apr 24 2008 at 7:26 pm